Police release CCTV of two men after woman, 22, was spiked while on night out with friends at nightclub
- Spiking happened in Bristol’s Lizard Lounge, which is popular with students
- Victim, 22, had to be taken to hospital for treatment after it happened in May
- Now police have released two CCTV stills of a pair of men they want to talk to
Two men are being hunted by the police after a young woman was spiked in a Bristol nightclub.
Avon and Somerset Police today released two CCTV stills of men they want to speak to over the incident where the 22-year-old was targeted.
The spiking happened nearly three months ago, it is not clear the reason for the delay in the appeal.
It happened at Lizard Lounge, in Queens Road, which is known to be popular with students in the south-west city.
Detectives looking into what happened believe the spiking occurred just before 3am.
The effect of the drug on the woman was so serious she had to be rushed to hospital for treatment.
A police spokesman said: ‘We are appealing for the public’s help to identify these men we would like to speak to in connection with a suspected spiking in Bristol.
‘The men in the CCTV footage have information we believe will aid our investigation.
On Friday, May 13, at around 2.40am, a 22-year-old woman was spiked while out with friends at Lizard Lounge, in Queens Road.
The suspected spiking happened in Bristol’s Lizard Lounge, which is popular with students
Now police have released two CCTV stills of a pair of men they want to talk to over incident
‘Her friends stayed with her, and she was taken to hospital where she was later discharged.
‘We hope the men, pictured, may be able to assist our enquiries.
‘If you are able to identify the men in the CCTV or have any further information which could aid the investigation, please call 101 and quote reference number 5222113284.’
Figures emerged last year showing 15 per cent of females, seven per cent of males and 17 per cent of those identifying as other have had their drink spiked, according to a snap poll by The Alcohol Education Trust.
The survey, which was open for a week from October 12 and had 747 responses, asked: ‘Do you think you have ever had one of your drinks spiked?’, with 94 replying yes and a further 26 saying ‘maybe’.
Helena Conibear, CEO of The Alcohol Education Trust, told MailOnline: ‘Up until now, we have had extensive verbal evidence of the level of drink spiking and where it is taking place as we work with young people day to day across the UK.
Ilana El-baz (pictured above), 20, has recalled how she was left semi-paralysed on a staircase after returning home from a Bristol nightclub last year. She shared a recording filmed by her boyfriend showing her struggling to get up the stairs with her eyes rolling as her head falls into the railings
‘This snap poll of 750 young people confirms all the trends we have been listening to: the shocking fact that one in eight young women have experienced spiking, that it is happening as often at private parties as in the night time economy and that most people do not report spiking at the moment as they worry they will not be believed, are unsure exactly what happened or feel it was too late by the time they realised.’
She added: ‘As 50 per cent of cases where drink spiking was reported weren’t followed up, the lack of reporting is perhaps not surprising. If we are going to tackle drink spiking we ask everyone to please report it to the venue, police or go to A and E.
‘Try and keep the drink as evidence and ask for a blood or urine test. To anyone thinking it is a joke to spike someone’s drink, can we remind them that it is a serious criminal offence with up to a ten years prison sentence, not to mention the sometimes devastating effect it can have on victims’ lives.’
While injection spiking is still possible, drink spiking is a lot more common.
Incidents of drink spiking in the UK increased by 108 per cent between 2015 and 2018, with 179 incidents taking place in 2017 alone.
This is only the officially recorded numbers – and is likely to be much higher as it is common for people not to report it to police.
Charity Drinkaware advise: ‘Don’t accept a drink from someone you don’t know and if they’re available, use drink stoppers, which can be purchased online, for the top of your bottle.’
Rohypnol (or Roofie) and Gamma Hydroxybutyrate (GHB) are the most commonly known ‘date-rape’ drugs.
Recreational drugs like Ecstasy, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD), Ketamine and other ‘party-drugs’ are sometimes used to spike alcoholic drinks.
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